Microsoft brings largest ever presence to CES 2014

Microsoft is returning to the Consumer Electronics Show [CES] in 2014 after a one-year absence from one of the world’s largest technology shows.

The BBC reports that CES 2014’s organisers informed them the firm had committed to meeting rooms at the Las Vegas show and that it’s the largest presence the firm has ever had at the event.

"Microsoft is officially back in the International CES. They are taking out significant space in meeting rooms - it's actually a larger presence than I believe they have ever had,” said Gary Shapiro, president of the Consumer Electronics Association, which is responsible for the event. "We have had a tremendous partnership [with Microsoft] going back to the very beginning. You know, we had one little blip this year... but now we're happy to have them back with a physical presence."

Even with Microsoft announcing its return to CES in 2014, Ben Wood, a tech consultant from CCS Insight, criticised its absence from other mobile shows across the globe.

"If you look at the assets that Microsoft has now, I'd argue that it's virtually essential that it steps up its efforts at not just CES but also other shows like Barcelona's Mobile World Congress where its absence has been noted,” Wood told the BBC.

CES 2014 attracted some 152,000 attendees with 3,282 exhibitors across a plethora of venues in the Nevada city with most of the industry’s largest technology companies likely to launch products at the show, which runs from 7 to 10 January.